Hi everyone

I'd like to share some tips that I learned while battling acne for the last 16+ years

I read a ton of info about causes of acne, ranging from diet to home remedies, prescriptions, etc.

There seems to be a ton of info out there which is often contradicting or confusing as, for example, one source tells you that chocolate and junk food causes breakouts and another source says diet has no connection to acne.

Well after years and years of my own research and experimenting on myself.. I've finally been able to get my acne under control. The one thing I've learned is not everything you read online or even everything your doctor says is true for everyone. Everyone is different. So get to know your own body and through trial and error, find what works for you.

I'd like to share what worked for me finally after seeming trying literally everything out there.

1. Diet -- diet is essential to acne prevention for many people. I know people who can chow down on fast food not get a single breakout, they are the lucky ones. For me, this was not the case. I could always feel one coming on after eating certain foods like deep fried, junk food. Myfavorite was fish and chips... and iCould never figure out why I had 3-5 cysts forming on my face after a fish &chip binge. I've been mostly vegetarian my whole life, slightly deviating from strict vegetarianism but always returning back to it, with the exception of dairy and seafood. I noticed when I didnteat dairy products and seafood, my skin would generally be more clear but I never made the direct correlation. Finally I realized that seafood was an allergy for many people, that excessive iodine consumption can cause acne in some people, as well as the excessive oil in deepfried foods. Combine the two, I'm consuming oily, deep fried shrimp, which for some reason created the perfect breeding ground for acne in my skin. I always wondered why I would break out during certain times really really badly with 5-7 cysts on my face, I realized there was a direct link between my obsession with shrimp, lobster, chinese food, etc. When I cut these foods out of my diet, my cystic acne greatly reduced. I mean immensely. So watch your diet. You could be allergic to meat, dairy, seafood, wheat, oil, etc. I rarely eat dairy/eggs, and have now cut out all meat, fish, and seafood. I do still eat a bit of chocolate though. This could be a trigger for some people. For me it's bearable in small amounts.

2. exfoliation - I bought a clarisonic. I realized that exfoliating the skin was an important factor in removing dead cells, to encourage new growth and remove excessive dirt that mixes with the skin's natural oils. I know adding the clarisonic to my regimen greatly improved my complexion. BUT, I know diet played an even greater role as I still had many flareups. Thing is.. exfoliating your skin preps your skinfor the next steps..

3. Retin-A - if you havent heard of it, look it up. Retin-a is vitamin a and regenerates new skin faster, getting rid of large pores and increasing cell turnover. You can order it online as its much cheaper than getting a prescription from a dermatologist. It's also a great way to lessen wrinkles.

4. Benzoyl peroxide and Salicylic Acid(used together)-Everyone has heard of BP and SA. There are a million products out there with either of these ingredients. Thething is, they need to be used in conjunction to work best. BP kills acne bacteria. SA regenerates new skin cells. One lacks what the other offers, so they need to be used together. Another important thing is that they need to be left on the skin like a spot treatment, not rinsed (like in a face wash). The contact time of a face wash just isn't enough to effectively combat acne. So... what I did was I found neutrogena spot treatment (5% BP)and neutrogena spot gel (2% SA). Washed my face with a gentle cleanser, and then mixed a small drop of the Neutrogena 5% BPspot treatment into my moisturizer and apply it all over my face. I wait a little bit and then mix some of the Neutrogena Spot gel (2% SA) into a small bit of moisturizer and apply to my face again.

This has kept my skin clear for the first time in what feels like forever and I just want to share what worked for me, I know all too well the struggle of teenage acne that followed me into my adult years. My mom said acne was just a teen thing and would go away. Not true for all of us. Take action to find out what works for you as early as you can, to avoid battling something unnecessarily for years like I did.

Let me know if you have any other questions I'd be happy to help.Thanks for listening to my story and I hope some of my tips help someone avoid what I had to go through. If only I knew then, what I know now.